Which Fighter Broke Your Heart When They Declined \ Lost?

Not the same fighter because he was an over-rated flat track bully.

 

He accomplished what he accomplished and was a first ballot HOF, still beloved and worshipped as a hero in the small island of Puerto Rico. It is what it is. Haters gonna hate.

 

It is what it is. As soon as his ego was deflated, he vanished from the scene in any meaningful capacity as though he were nothing but hot air.

He belongs in the Naseem Hamed bin.

 

Benn, when losing to the very excellent Michael Watson and he should have also beat the Monocle everytime...

such is Boxing!

 

We’ll always have the McClellan fight.

 

How I’d find fighters to watch on YouTube is by scouring the forums and just picking a few guys at random who people said were good. I got to see Benitez decline unknowingly, many guys really - it unsettled me deeply and introduced me to the concept of head trauma. I didn’t understand boxing (not much has changed) I believed that age decreed prime that a fighter was as good in his last few as he was at his signature win so I saw a lot of shot fighters…

 

Our sport is littered with greats whose careers declined against opponents who in their prime they would have beaten easily. Which is of course sad to see.

However likewise for me personally, to see fighters like Leon Spinks, Buster Douglas and Andy Ruiz, who had their for one night only Rocky Balboa moment, but partly through lack of dedication they lost those belts, that saddens me.

Witnessing the above career declines, does evoke memories of me as a teen, dreaming of hearing the ring announcer at MSG, saying my name preceded by the phrase, "and the New Heavyweight Champion of the World....", i can never imagine having achieved that lofty pinnacle, how anyone through drink, drugs and the buffet table would contribute to losing the title (or depositing the belt in the trash can)

As Marciano said "What could be better than walking down any street, in any city, and knowing you're the heavyweight champion of the world?"
I concurred with the above quote when a teen, and even now 50 yrs later i still feel that.

Ah well enough of the reminicising, and seeing things through rose tinted spectacles.

 

Benitez lying on the canvas after getting knocked out by Hilton is one of the saddest things I've ever seen, he looked like a sick puppy crying for help. And of course where he is now, it's just terrible.

 

Mathew Saad against Braxton
Benn against Collins
Holmes against Tyson
Duran just never stopped. Losing to that ---- pazienza and Camacho
Toney losing to the very untalented Lebedev
Marquez against Bradley
Fenech against Nelson and beyond
Mancini against Haugen
McGuigan against Cruz
Norton against Shavers and Cooney
Just some off the top of my head

 

Sanders was over the hill anyway but I seriously expected him to train his ass off for Vitali and instead he went on a eating binge

 

Someone mentioned Holyfield vs Moorer it’s funny because Holyfield bounced up and down so long (roid cycles) but I was going to say Holy vs Bowe 3 when he couldn’t pull the trigger to finish Bowe and looked like he was having a heart attack was tough for me to watch but then he went on another 10 plus years

 

Nah. Hamed has his own bin all to himself.

 

Joe Frazier, after his devastating loss to George Foremen.

Joe was the undefeated, undisputed heavyweight champion with an aura of invincibility. All that was instantly gone with that defeat. He had some decent wins afterward but losses to Ali and Foreman again. He still had the heart of a warrior but he was not as well conditioned or motivated as before, legally blind in one eye - clearly past his best. I had hoped to see him retire at the top as an undefeated champion.